Imagine you could build the city of the future, from scratch, right now. What would it look like? What would it do? It’s not a hypothetical question. According to this Salon article, software developer Plan IT intends to do exactly that: “Plan IT Valley” will be a new city located in northern Portugal, and is …
Just came across this bizarre story on Nextnature.net: Tired of spending time, money and energy on preparing meals, [Rob Rhinehart] decided to find a new way to survive without actual food. He created a unique mixture called “Soylent”, which contains nothing but the elements the body needs: iron, vitamins, fat, calcium and dozens of other …
Welcome to Cosmic Revolutions’ Topic Guides, where we wrap up a series of articles on a common theme. This week, let’s look at one of the biggest tags at Cosmic Revolutions: Sustainability. Sustainability is all about whether we humans survive as a civilization, and how well. Earth’s resources are finite, meaning the our growth potential …
The best way to solve the world’s hunger problem is a hotly debated topic. In the next few paragraphs, I’ll take a look at one fairly conventional idea, and explore another proposal that’s a bit more out of the box. But in the end, I’d like to poke at some of the assumptions underlying both …
It’s no secret that the internet has given us new ways to communicate. But if you think the information revolution has come and gone, I’ve got news for you: it’s just getting started, and we’re already seeing a dramatic transformation in the way we learn about the world. It’s also causing a shift in some …
Last week, we looked at some reasons why even the most rational individual might feel a touch of dread at the thought of a car that drives itself. This week, let’s zoom out a bit, and imagine a future society where driverless cars are the norm. I think this is a very plausible scenario, but …
Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. – Arthur C. Clarke In last week’s post, we looked at the emerging technologies that allow a direct interface between your brain and a computer (or machine) – a BCI. Check out last week’s links if you’re interested in the “how.” Intracranial wiretaps, hands-free driving and monkey-robot …
Three times a week, I go to the gym on my way home from work. And three times a week, I ask myself the same question: isn’t this a waste? I don’t mean the exercise. A longer lifespan, plus reduced risk of Alzheimer‘s and cancer, is all the justification I need. No, I’m talking about …
The “Smart City” is not so much a concrete plan as it is a nebulous ideal, one that encompasses both environmental sustainability and human happiness in the most efficient way possible. And while it’s a matter of opinion whether a given city is designed well enough to be called “smart” there’s no question the world … Continue reading
Imagine you’ve got an unlimited budget to create the most efficient garbage system the world has ever seen. (Okay, maybe not the most glamorous hypothetical I’ve ever offered you. But earth’s human population is producing 1,300,000,000 tons of solid waste every year, and it’s got to go somewhere. Just think what a hero you’d be!) … Continue reading
Ever wanted to text-chat with a bottlenose dolphin? Or collaborate with a bonobo on a chart-topping blues-rock anthem? I’m not promising it’ll happen, but… something like it might. A reader and friend passed along this bizarre and intriguing article from NPR: Peter Gabriel’s Interspecies Internet. The “interspecies internet” project is actually led by Neil Gershenfeld, … Continue reading
The word “metadata” has been popping up in the news a lot lately, thanks to the revelation that the U.S. National Security Agency has been collecting it from millions of Americans for years. And this is no flash-in-the-pan political scandal that will be forgotten next year; as our ultra-connected, electronic future continues to emerge, we’ll … Continue reading
Last week, we looked at several crazy – but plausible! – paradigms of the world to come. But there are way more futurist visions than I can fit in a single post, so here are 5 more futures that YOU might end up living in. Which one would you pick, if it was up to … Continue reading
What will the future be like? If you’ve spent any time reading this blog, you’ll know a few details: massive cities, robot drivers, and computers that connect directly to your brain. But what about the big picture? What’s the whole world going to be like in 1,000 years? As the saying goes, ask 10 different … Continue reading
Big houses, big lots, big SUVs – you know the drill. Suburbs create pollution, make people drive everywhere, and use up way more space than they need. Can they ever be truly sustainable? Well, I don’t know, but there’s a trend that’s moving in the right direction, and its popularity is growing. Over at the … Continue reading
Solar panels are a double-edged sword. On one hand, they’re a great way to get clean electricity. Unlike fossil fuels, sun power isn’t radically altering our climate, and we won’t be staring down the barrel of a “peak sun” problem for at least another 5 billion years. On the other hand, they are relatively expensive … Continue reading
Picture this: it’s the near future, and you’re on a first date. You’re at an average restaurant in the suburbs, somewhere in the US. Your date, like half the people in the restaurant, is wearing a flat pin the size of a postage stamp on one lapel. As if you didn’t have enough reasons to … Continue reading
Imagine you’re on a long train ride. Bored, you turn to the landscape rolling past the windows, and decide to dress it up a bit. You conjure up some flocks of exotic birds to hang in the sky, and a few horses that appear to be running alongside. Before you know it, you’ve arrived at … Continue reading
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